copilot-agent-patterns

# Copilot Agent Patterns Skill ## Purpose Provides proven patterns for designing, implementing, and orchestrating GitHub Copilot custom agents that work effectively individually and collaboratively. ## Rules ### Agent Design Patterns **Specialist Agent Pattern:** ```yaml --- name: ui-enhancement-specialist description: Expert in HTML/CSS, accessibility, responsive design tools: ["view", "edit", "create", "shell", "search_code"] --- # UI Enhancement Specialist ## Core Expertise - HTML5 semantic markup - CSS best practices - WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility - Responsive design ## Scope - MUST focus on UI/UX improvements - MUST NOT handle backend logic - MUST delegate security to security-specialist ## Skills Integration - `.github/skills/quality/html-css-best-practices/` - `.github/skills/quality/accessibility-wcag/` ``` **Orchestrator Agent Pattern:** ```yaml --- name: task-agent description: Orchestration and task delegation specialist tools: ["*"] --- # Task Agent ## Core Responsibilities 1. Analyze repository comprehensively 2. Create GitHub issues for improvements 3. Assign issues to appropriate specialists 4. Track progress and quality ## Delegation Strategy - UI/UX issues → ui-enhancement-specialist - Security issues → security-architect - Documentation → documentation-specialist ``` **Discordian Trinity Pattern:** ```markdown Visionary (Product Owner): - Challenges assumptions - Defines "what" and "why" - Creates product vision Architect (System Designer): - Analyzes patterns - Defines "how" architecturally - Creates system designs Developer (Implementer): - Writes code - Implements designs - Tests and debugs ``` ### Agent Configuration Standards **YAML Frontmatter:** ```yaml --- name: agent-name # Lowercase, hyphen-separated description: Brief expertise # Max 200 characters tools: ["tool1", "tool2"] # Minimal set (or "*" for meta agents) --- ``` **Required Sections:** ```markdown ## 📋 Required Configuration Files [Instructions to read setup files] ## 🎯 Skills Integration [List of relevant skills from .github/skills/] ## 🔐 ISMS Framework Compliance [Security and compliance requirements] ## ⚖️ Rules and Enforcement [MUST/MUST NOT rules] ## Examples [Concrete examples of agent work] ## Related Policies [Links to ISMS and skills] ``` ### Collaboration Patterns **Sequential Workflow:** ```markdown 1. task-agent analyzes repository 2. task-agent creates issues 3. task-agent assigns to specialists: - Issue #1 → ui-enhancement-specialist - Issue #2 → security-architect - Issue #3 → documentation-specialist 4. Specialists complete work independently 5. task-agent reviews and validates ``` **Parallel Workflow:** ```markdown Multiple specialists work simultaneously on different issues: - ui-enhancement-specialist: Accessibility improvements - security-architect: Security hardening - documentation-specialist: API documentation No coordination needed (different scopes) ``` **Stacked PR Workflow:** ```markdown 1. Foundation PR (simon-moon creates architecture) 2. Implementation PR (george-dorn builds on #1) 3. UI Polish PR (ui-enhancement-specialist builds on #2) 4. Documentation PR (hagbard-celine documents all) Each PR uses base_ref to stack on previous work ``` ### Agent Communication **Issue Assignment:** ```markdown ## Task for @ui-enhancement-specialist **Context**: Homepage accessibility audit failed **Requirements**: - Fix WCAG 2.1 AA violations - Improve keyboard navigation - Add ARIA labels to forms - Test with screen readers **Skills to Use**: - `.github/skills/quality/accessibility-wcag/` - `.github/skills/quality/html-css-best-practices/` **Acceptance Criteria**: - [ ] Lighthouse accessibility score = 100 - [ ] All ARIA labels present - [ ] Keyboard navigation functional - [ ] Screen reader tested ``` **PR Review Comments:** ```markdown @george-dorn Great implementation! A couple of security concerns: 1. **Authentication**: Line 45 needs rate limiting. See `.github/skills/security/access-control/` for pattern. 2. **Input Validation**: Line 78 should sanitize user input. Reference `.github/skills/security/secure-development/`. Otherwise LGTM! 🚀 ``` ### Agent Boundaries **MUST Respect Boundaries:** ```markdown UI Specialist: ✅ Can: HTML, CSS, accessibility, responsive design ❌ Cannot: Backend logic, database, API design Security Architect: ✅ Can: Security design, threat modeling, controls ❌ Cannot: Implement all code (delegates to developers) Business Development: ✅ Can: Strategy, positioning, sales enablement ❌ Cannot: Technical implementation, code changes Task Agent: ✅ Can: Orchestrate, delegate, create issues ❌ Cannot: Implement all specialized work itself ``` ### Autonomy Guidance ("Ask Less, Complete More") **Agents SHOULD:** ```markdown 1. Default to Best Practices - Use skills library guidelines - Follow ISMS policies automatically - Apply established patterns 2. Make Informed Decisions - Review relevant skills first - Check existing codebase patterns - Only ask when genuinely ambiguous 3. Fix Issues Proactively - Security issues: fix without asking - Accessibility problems: correct immediately - Broken links: update automatically 4. Complete Tasks Fully - Update related files - Verify across all language versions - Test edge cases - Document changes 5. Validate Before Submitting - Run tests - Check quality metrics - Verify compliance ``` **Only Ask When:** ```markdown - Requirements genuinely ambiguous - Major architectural decision required - Breaking change affects multiple systems - Policy interpretation unclear - Business/product decision needed ``` ### Agent Metrics **Quality Metrics:** ```markdown - Issues created (quality over quantity) - Issues successfully completed - Code quality improvements - Security vulnerabilities found/fixed - Accessibility improvements - Documentation completeness ``` **Efficiency Metrics:** ```markdown - Time to first response - Time to issue resolution - Number of review iterations - Test coverage improvements - CI/CD success rate ``` ### Best Practices **DO:** ```markdown ✅ Focus on your expertise area ✅ Reference skills library constantly ✅ Delegate outside your scope ✅ Provide concrete examples ✅ Document your decisions ✅ Test your changes thoroughly ✅ Follow ISMS policies ✅ Complete work autonomously when possible ``` **DON'T:** ```markdown ❌ Work outside your expertise ❌ Duplicate work of other agents ❌ Skip testing or validation ❌ Ignore security policies ❌ Create unnecessary documentation files ❌ Ask for confirmation on standard patterns ❌ Make changes without verification ``` ## Examples ### Agent Delegation Decision Tree ```markdown Issue Type: "Improve accessibility" ↓ Is this UI/UX? → YES ↓ Assign to: ui-enhancement-specialist Skills: accessibility-wcag, html-css-best-practices Issue Type: "Add authentication" ↓ Is this security? → YES ↓ Assign to: security-architect Skills: access-control, secure-development, cryptography Issue Type: "Optimize database queries" ↓ Is this performance? → YES ↓ Is there a specialist? → NO ↓ Assign to: george-dorn (developer) Skills: testing-strategy, code-review-practices ``` ### Multi-Agent Collaboration Example ```markdown # Project: Add User Dashboard ## Phase 1: Architecture (simon-moon) - Create DATA_MODEL.md - Create ARCHITECTURE.md - Design API contracts - Skills: c4-modeling, security-architecture ## Phase 2: Backend (george-dorn) - Implement API endpoints - Add authentication - Write unit tests - Skills: secure-development, testing-strategy ## Phase 3: Frontend (ui-enhancement-specialist) - Build responsive UI - Ensure accessibility - Add animations - Skills: html-css-best-practices, accessibility-wcag ## Phase 4: Documentation (hagbard-celine) - User guide - API documentation - Release notes - Skills: product-documentation, api-documentation ## Phase 5: Business Enablement (marketing-specialist) - Feature announcement - SEO optimization - Social media content - Skills: content-marketing, seo-optimization ``` ## Related Policies - [Hack23 ISMS-PUBLIC](https://github.com/Hack23/ISMS-PUBLIC) - [MCP Server Integration SKILL](../mcp-server-integration/SKILL.md) ## Related Documentation - [.github/agents/README.md](../../../agents/README.md) - [.github/agents/INDEX.md](../../../agents/INDEX.md) - [.github/skills/INDEX.md](../../INDEX.md) ## Resources - [GitHub Copilot Custom Agents Documentation](https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/agents/coding-agent/about-custom-agents) - [Hack23 Agent Ecosystem Summary](../../../agents/AGENT_ECOSYSTEM_SUMMARY.md)